Paint Brushes and Love Notes
by DenaHoshigaki
Summary: AU. When Sai upgrades from being a lonely home schooled boy to a senior in high school he stumbles upon the ghost of Konoha Academy, he promises her to help her find out who she is and what her purpose is. But when the time comes for her to cross over, will he be so willing to let her go? Sai x OC Rated M for possible lemons and violence.
1. Meeting

**Hi, Dena here~ Long time no see. I'm going to try my hardest and stay on top of this story the best I can, I know it's not the best but really I'm seriously trying so please don't flame it, not all of us can be five star authors and I don't aim to be one. Either enjoy the story or please just carry on with your day. You can try to tell me things on how to improve my stories but I'll probably not listen because I'm pretty set in my ways and even if I tried to fix the problems and improve, I probably wouldn't be that successful. I really hope you enjoy this fanfiction c: Thanks so much lovexconspiracy for supporting me and giving me that necessary little push to get back into writing, I really did miss it. I don't own any characters except my OC. **

**This story is AU and there are OCs in it, let's be realistic, expect the characters to be a bit OOC please.**

I'd retired my days to haunting the school, unsure of who I was and where I'd come from, all I knew was this school was familiar to me and the rooftop was where I called home. Watching the wind blow around a paper bag a student had left on the roof, I found myself pained, while I had no memory, it was feelings like that that I could recall. I missed feeling the way the wind caressed my body, during those days I had carelessly hated the wind for messing up my carefully placed hair and accessories. It was the little things in the world that people overlooked that I found myself missing, and as the days passed I felt like I was gradually forgetting more and more things. Almost like, I was starting to disappear and it terrified me, I had something I had to do, and while I was unaware of it, it scared me to think that I would just disappear like this.

The first light and sounds of movement in the school alerted me that the day was about to begin, and after floating over to the edge of the building I looked down watching as the students began to arrive. Slowly at first they trickled in before finally arriving in groups and packs, all trapped outside waiting for the doors to be opened.

Access into the school was limited and during the morning the doors opened at 7:30, class starting precisely fifteen minutes later at 7:45 a.m. and not ending until 2:30 p.m. My eyes shifted closed, taking in the sounds of the morning birds calling and the idle chatter, it was a Monday so conversations were riddled with stories of the parties that took place over the weekend as well as short visits to the beach or other out of town adventures. I opened my eyes only enough to eye the male who entered the school, his eyes were black most of the time, but somehow I knew that when he was angry and pissed off they turned red. A violent red that I was terrified of, of course, with my invisible form haunting the hallways I've seen him angry innumerable times with friends, enemies, and just anything that existed for that sense but never enough to paint his eyes red a sight that was immortalized in my mind.

His raven locks which spiked in the back and framed his face in the front often reminded me of the 'business in the front, party in the back' phrase that I probably had said a lot when I was alive, that is if I was ever alive like these people. Which I sort of questioned since my form was forever immortalized in a high school's uniform identical to the other female's that attended this academy.

"You shouldn't sit so close to the edge," A voice behind me rang out in my ears. I was confused though; there was no one else on this rooftop near the edge besides me. Was it possible that there was another like me in this school? A companion? Did God finally cease his torture and allow me a comrade?

Turning in my place to peer behind me, I eyed an extremely pale boy with the same shade of raven locks as the one below me who'd just arrived to the school. His soulless black eyes were fixated on me so I knew he was talking to me.

"You can see me?" I questioned doubtfully.

"Should I not or something, you're right there in front of me. You're going to fall; are you suicidal or something? Do you take drugs?" He questioned neutrally.

"Fall?!" I cried out barely containing a snort of laughter that began to wrack my body. "You're worried that me of all people will _fall_?" I questioned as if the very thought of it was ridiculous.

"It happens all the time; I've seen it on the news." He pointed out impatiently, it occurred to me the annoyed look on his face was probably because he thought I was teasing him.

"I'm already dead; a little fall can't kill me anymore than I already am." I offered to him in a tone of amusement though I was only met with a look of unamusement.

"You must be on drugs," The male confirmed, "Wait here, I'll get a teacher." He offered before turning on his heel and leaving.

I shrugged and stood up, slipping through the door as I floated after him, there was no way in hell I was letting him get away. This was the first person I've ever met that could see me and I wasn't going to let him slip by, "By all means, go right ahead, in fact I'll come with you. Like I said, I'm dead."

This unknown male paused enough to watch me as I floated beside him, "Alright, I give. How'd you die?" He questioned curiously.

"I don't quite know," I admitted thoughtfully.

"Well what's your name?" He quipped.

"I'm not sure; what's yours?"

"Sai… What _do _you know?" He wondered.

"Nothing; I know how things feel and I wish I could still feel them." I pointed out, probably a little glad on his part that we were still on the staircase to the roof alone or else the other students would undoubtedly shun him for his behavior right now. "You're new here right? I've never seen you before."

"Yeah, I used to be homeschooled." Sai offered casually, "If you're dead then why can I see you and no one else can?" He questioned.

"I'm not sure, maybe you're lucky? But I'm kind of glad; it was getting kinda lonely being ignored all the time."

"So…. You're not going to leave me alone?" Sai questioned blandly and I wasn't sure if he was dissatisfied with his new stalker or just didn't care.

"I… Don't know. I need help, I can't exactly find out who I am or where I'm from and I'm tired of being alone. I want to move on, but I don't know how." I explained to him, "Would you help me?"

Sai thought over my request for a few minutes, as if it really required thinking. "If you help me, I'll help you. I've never… Been to a school before… I don't quite know what to do." He finally admitted unsurely.

Laughing, I nodded my own head, "Of course, I'll try my best. First things first though, the others can't see me, so don't talk to me when there are other people around. We need a code word though so I can know when you need help and coaching…" I offered tapping my chin despite me being unable to feel it. "How about… You just ball up your fist if you need me to coach you through a conversation; how about that?" I offered to him and he accepted my terms with a nod.

"Do you know where to go?" I offered as Sai turned, pulling off his back pack he dug through the bag, searching for something, probably his schedule I figured.

After a few minutes of digging, Sai produced his schedule and offered it to me as if I could actually hold it. I eyed him dumbly and Sai seemed to be flustered by that, "Oh sorry," He admitted, looking at his schedule I floated over his shoulder and nodded my head.

"Miss Graham? She's pretty nice, yells a lot though; I have to say she's the best geometry teacher in the whole school." I explained as I landed on my feet, opting to walk beside him as I led him to the math wing of the school. "If you want to be a complete nerd, choose a seat in the front but no one will talk to you. Choosing a seat in the back will guarantee you an F but a lot of friends, I suggest one in the middle. It's the perfect spot; you don't look too ambitious or lazy." I offered to him, as we waded through the thickening crowd of people, or at least he waded, I walked through in that respect; we passed the raven haired boy from earlier.

Sasuke was beautiful in any and every regards and every girl attending Konoha Academy knew it, falling all over the boy. In fact, if I was correct, I recalled watching him walk around with his arm swung around a new girl every week. I'd seen him hook up countless amounts of times with other women in the bathrooms, changing rooms, empty classrooms, behind the bleachers in the gym, and even the rooftop. As we passed by him in the hallway, I could have sworn he looked in my direction, if only a little bit. I was surprised, could he really see me or was it just a coincidence but before I could confirm it the loud shriek of another female calling his name rang through the corridor and his eyes were on the beautiful babe that ran through the hallway and jumped up, wrapping her arms around him. A smirk grew on his lips and by the look in his eyes and the way he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, leading her off to a secluded portion of the school I knew what he had in mind to do with her.

I glanced over, seeing Sai paused at a locker and fumbling with the lock on it before it finally popped open, he was so pasty and pale there was no doubt about it, no matter what I did he was going to be an outcast but I didn't have the heart to tell him that. He was an awkward looking individual, and the blank look in his eyes made him appear boorish, unloading his books in his locker, Sai kept only his math book and notebook. "Hey, how'd you get all your textbooks? I thought today was your first day?" I inquired.

"I came over the weekend to get them," Sai explained lowly, trying not to attract attention to himself.

I nodded then, knowing why I'd never seen him before, if he came on the weekends that would explain everything. For as long as I could remember, weekends were always black to me. The ground swallowed me up and before I knew it I was tossed up on the lawn on a Monday morning. Perhaps it was God's way of showing me what was to come once I disappeared; this was what I had to look forward to; black darkness and a feeling of nothing.

Sai turned, shouldering his bag once more before walking towards Graham's classroom which I kindly pointed out to him.

_~After School~_

The day was uncharacteristically slow, but once it was over, it felt great. Sai was partnered in his science class with Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki, I thought it was hilarious since he had the same team in his P.E. class. Hilarious really. And after watching him get beaten down by Sakura after calling her ugly was really worth it, I mean sure I felt bad for him but if he would have listened to me and done what I said he would have probably become friends with her versus an enemy. Naruto however, I was always glad to see that he was willing to take the time and be patient with someone, even if he wasn't readily and visibly patient I could tell Naruto and him would be become better friends in the future.

For now though, I sat on the roof once more with Sai beside me looking off in the horizon while he laid on his back to watch the clouds, "Where do I even begin looking to find stuff out about he?" He wondered out loud. "I guess I could look up deaths of any and all female students who ever attended this school…" He offered, "Finding out your identity probably won't be the challenge, it's probably trying to figure out why you're here that will be the challenge." Sai spoke up as I nodded.

"Yeah… But maybe just finding out who I am will be better than nothing. Right?" I offered to him as he nodded his head.

"I really can't deny that," Sai agreed before standing. "I gotta go home now and do some research, would you like to come with me?" He offered kindly to me.

A bright smile crossed my features and I nodded my head, I'd never really _left_ the school grounds before. The school was where I woke up and I assumed it was where I'd disappear. Standing up myself, I walked with him, rather than floated, hell I could get used to this walking thing, towards the exit. At first, Sai held the door open for me, before pausing and remembering that I could just walk through it.

"Thanks for the offer," I joked before walking through the door.

Even though I spoke earlier of how I hated being alone, I really didn't mind not talking to Sai. Just the thought of him walking beside me was enough to fill me with a sense of satisfaction, knowing that I had the choice to talk to him or not. And while we both remained silent, I didn't mind at all, it was a comfortable silence. As Sai strode through the gates casually, I found myself being thrown back with a sharp zapping sound. Blinking, I looked at the gate once more as Sai paused and turned, watching me neutrally as I attempted and reattempted to step through the gates, each attempt as unsuccessful as the last. Growing fed up with being stung, really the first and only feeling I'd ever felt while in my dead form, I floated up and I tried to float around the invisible gate that kept me stuck within the confines of the school. Yet still, no matter how high or how far I flew, I was still met with a firm zap that tossed me on my butt.

I was beyond pissed at this point and Sai leaned against the concrete wall as he watched me time and time again be met with failure. "What're you doing?" He questioned in a tone laced with annoyance.

"I can't get through the gate… I'm stuck…" I explained helplessly, looking at him as if I were baffled by what was going on and truthfully, I was.

Taking a few steps back, I opted to try one last time; racing forwards I ran trying to run straight through the barrier that kept me inside. But I was once again, tossed on my back. I found myself looking up and over, spotting Sai as he straightened himself up. His mouth was open and he was definitely trying to say something, but I heard nothing. And then, it was as if the ground was swallowing me up, something like it did every Friday night once the stars came out. It terrified me because I knew it was only a Monday, yet here I was being dragged underground still. Maybe I wasn't as immortal as I likened myself to be.

**I know it's a really short chapter and it's not even that good, but I haven't honestly written in so long that I feel like I've forgotten how to do it. I'll try my hardest but this story is probably not going to be very long either. I know it feels weird that it's written in first person, personally I hate stories written in first person but to make the first chapter be what I want it to be, it's going to have to be first person. The rest of the story I'll try my hardest to do in third person. **


	2. Learning

The week passed by slowly for Sai, after having watched his dead friend sinking into the ground he hadn't seen her since. The image of her hand stretching out to him as if she were silently begging him to save her imprinted in his mind; he had momentarily forgotten she was just the spirit of a young girl and tried to grab her, only to find his hand folded over nothing but air.

Strolling into his art class on a Friday afternoon, he took a seat on a stool, his first week of school was coming to a close and the only thing he had to show for it was having gotten a bit closer to Naruto and Sakura, not to mention he didn't have to sit alone during lunch. Grabbing his apron that he'd managed to hang on the easel the day before, he wrapped the strings around his back to his front so he could tie it on his stomach. Retrieving a picture of his mother, father, and an infant him, he returned to his seat. The most recent assignment that was beginning today was to bring a picture from home and take an element in the picture to paint. He'd already outlined the basic images of his parent's faces and all he had left was to paint it.

Sai's eyes drug over to eye Hinata who had joined the empty easel next to him; propped up at her stand was a photograph of seven people that were obviously friends from a few years back. The seven must have been at the beach considering their swimming attire and the sandy backdrop. Those he recognized in the picture was Neji standing next to Tenten who was trying to get close to him, however Neji was obviously too busy keeping himself close to Hinata as if someone was going to jump out and hurt her. Hinata however was blushing with Naruto's arm around her, giving her and Sakura bunny ears. Sasuke stood with his arm around the spirit girl he'd met before. Sai's eyes widened in recognition as he stared at the still image of the female; her long light brown hair tied in a messy bun, some strands falling down from the bun and even the style itself. Her bikini was a dark purple and he had to admit, it looked pretty hot on her; her body seemingly leaning into Sasuke's touch, her arms wrapped around him and a bright grin was on her face, the blue shade of her eyes matching the clear aqua shade of the ocean behind them. Hinata caught Sai staring at the picture, her own face shading a light pink, "Wh-What is it?" She questioned Sai nervously.

Sai in return glanced at Hinata before eying his dead acquaintance. "Who is that?" He asked, pointing at her as if he'd never seen her in his life, "She's really pretty." He added casually.

Hinata only eyed the girl, "Yeah, she was…" She offered sadly and Sai suddenly regretted asking her. It was obvious Hinata and her had been close.

"Hey look, I had no clue, I'm really sorry Hinata." Sai apologized sympathetically as Hinata shook her head.

"No it's okay Sai, you didn't know. Her name was Kohana." She explained before turning in her seat and going to painting. Feeling bad for having upset the shy girl, Sai didn't bother her anymore about it.

**~Lunch~**

During lunch Sai headed to the library, sitting at the computer to do some research on students who attended Konoha Academy named Kohana. As he scrolled through the results containing articles of honor roll students, people volunteering, and several other public events involving Kohana, he was half-annoyed at her for having been involved in so many extracurricular things. But he really couldn't blame her, it's not like she knew she was going to die and later need Sai to figure out who she was. On the other hand though, he was glad she was so involved, he would be able to tell her a lot about her former life with all of these articles.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" A familiar feminine voiced over in Sai's ear.

Flustering, Sai closed his screen but not quick enough as he turned to eye the bubblegum haired female behind him.

"What're you trying to look at?" Sakura questioned, her inquiring look quickly fading to suspicion.

Sai shook his head, flustering slightly once more. "Nothing… I just… I saw this picture Hinata had earlier and there was a gorgeous girl named Kohana in it, I was just trying to figure out where she is so I can talk to her." He fudged, hoping Sakura would buy his story.

Sakura seemed to accept this as she nodded and took a seat at the empty computer chair next to him, "Why didn't you just ask Hinata?"

"She didn't look like she wanted to talk about it," He explained honestly.

"Do you want to know why?" Sakura inquired sadly.

Sai nodded as Sakura continued, "She died two years ago." She offered, a disturbed look crossing her features.

"How? Was she sick or something?" Sai wondered out loud.

Sakura eyed Sai for a few moments before leaning over and switching the computer off. "She killed herself." She offered before standing up, Sai's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Killed herself? Why?" He questioned as Sakura ran her fingers through her hair.

"Nobody really knows," She explained as she looked away. "They've questioned Sasuke but he doesn't really like talking about it. If you really want to know then all I can suggest is to get over it. Don't keep digging Sai, you'll only bring up painful memories and tick off Sasuke."

"What does Sasuke care? From my understanding he exchanges girls like he changes underwear," Sai supplied resentfully.

"There's a good reason for that too." Sakura explained before leaving the library.

Sai turned in his seat, switching the computer back on and scrolling through the results until he found a Facebook page for Kohana Takase appeared. After clicking the link to the page, he scrolled through Kohana's posts consisting of two year old posts from Sakura, Hinata, Sasuke, and almost everyone in the whole class. One post in particular stood out to Sai though, It was a recent post from Sasuke about six months old, 'there is no one like you' were the only words in the message and from the looks of it those were his only words to his former girlfriend ever since the time of her death. The sound of the bell ringing had Sai cease his search and head back to class.

Despite Sai's hopes by the time the end of the day rolled around, Kohana had still yet to return and he ended up spending the weekend wondering when his friend would appear again. It was really driving him insane, he was itching to tell her everything he'd learned about her but then again with the freedom of the weekend he was able to gather up more information about her former life, finding that Sakura's testimony from Friday afternoon was very true.

**I know, I know. "This chapter is even shorter than the last one" I'm sorry it's not going to be a very long story. I'm trying my best c: **


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